The Runesmith
chapter-483

“Did you really think that such a lowly-born nobody could abduct the young lady?”

“Argh … I didn't…”

“...and get away with it?”

“Ugh…”

Within a darkened chamber a lone man was being held in restraints. His head was hanging forward as only his hands were holding up his body. Chains hung down from the ceiling and connected to metallic cuffs that clamped around his wrists, leaving him suspended just above the cold, damp floor. The flickering light from a single torch revealed deep gashes and bruises covering his torso, evidence of prolonged torture.

Robert's breath was ragged, his strength fading away with each passing moment. The pain was relentless, and he had lost track of how long he had been in this hellish place. He struggled to keep his mind focused, to think of a way out, but the poison coursing through his veins muddied his thoughts.

Before him was an ever-grinning man of a lanky stature. In one of his hands was a long whip, its leather stained with blood. His eyes gleamed with a sadistic delight as he watched Robert’s suffering. The man was the personal torturer of the De Vere estate, a twisted individual who took pleasure in inflicting pain on others.

“It’s such a shame, you’re starting to turn into such a nice color, maybe the lord won’t mind if I do a little extra work, no one will care much for such a bastard like you.”

The man laughed while looking to the side. There, on a bloody workbench, were various tools for torture. The torturer approached the workbench, his fingers lightly tracing over the assortment of tools laid out. Robert's breath quickened, his heart pounding in his chest as he braced himself for the next wave of pain.

“Why don’t we get rid of the thing that caused this problem?”

The torturer chuckled and picked up a large pair of shears. He held them with both hands and squeezed to close them. They produced an audible sound, muffled by the dried flesh and blood left behind by previous victims. There was a large grin on the man’s face as he pointed the shears towards Robert’s groin, implying the body part he planned to use them on.

“Yes, we must remove that obscenely large tool. I’m sure the potions will heal up what’s left after. Lord Graham will surely be pleased!”

However, before the torturer could take another step, a tremor reverberated throughout the dungeon cell. The man stopped and listened. Soon, he could hear the footsteps of many soldiers. This dungeon lay beneath the knights' training ground, and for some reason, all of them were running somewhere.

“What was that?”

“Stay here, I’ll go look.”

The man torturing Robert wasn’t alone here, right in front of this chamber stood a guard watching over the whole procedure. Once the ruckus was heard he moved forward and left the torturer with his prisoner alone. The man shook his head in disappointment and wanted to turn back to face Robert again but before he did, something caught his eye.

“Huh? What is that?”

He rubbed his eyes as he wasn’t sure if he was seeing things but suddenly, from the dim corner of the chamber, a faint shimmering light flickered. At first, it seemed like a trick of the eye, but as the torturer squinted, he realized that it was a small floating geometrical shape, almost invisible to the naked eye. The torturer's brow furrowed in confusion as the device floated close and emitted a bright flash of light. Before he could react, the cube projected a beam of magical energy which collided with the piece of equipment he was trying to use the shears on.

“What the…”

The man screamed out in pain as he felt something explode between his own two legs. He instantly fell down to the ground, clutching the area that was hit with both his hands. The torturer's anguished screams echoed through the dungeon as he writhed on the ground, clutching his groin in a desperate attempt to quell the searing pain. The small floating device hovered near Robert, who, despite his own agony, managed a faint smile of satisfaction. His torturer had finally tasted a fraction of the pain he had inflicted on others.

Robert’s vision was foggy, but soon enough this problem was alleviated by the strange magical device. On the table with the torture tools were several potions, some for healing and others for detoxification. His captors used them to heal his wounds whenever they became too severe, a widespread tactic to enhance the mental anguish of a torture target. This friendly thing somehow pulled in the potions towards his body, to then shatter the glass casing above his head to let the healing liquids flow out.

“Hah… I see… that’s unexpected of him…”

A smile crept over Roberts's face as his vision started to recover. What he saw before him was a strange floating contraption. While he didn’t recognize it from anywhere, it had glowing runes on its metallic surface. An image of his younger brother instantly entered his mind and soon darkness took over as he lost consciousness.

Back outside, the man known as Count De Vere glanced out of the window. There he saw a strange spectacle of floating runic devices and his knights retreating in a disorganized manner. The sight puzzled and angered him, especially since the invader was just one man but he was walking through with barely any opposition.

"Who is this madman?"

He muttered under his breath, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. The Grand Commander beside him looked equally perturbed, but he maintained his composure, knowing that his duty was to protect the Count and his estate.

"Sir, you need not worry, the De Vere Azure Lion Knight order will handle this intruder.”

The man was wearing shiny blue-tinted armor. It was quite the spectacular-looking piece of art, reflecting the sunlight in a dazzling display. His back was hidden behind a large cape with the De Vere’s household cress. This crest consisted of a golden lion roaring on a field of azure, representing strength and nobility. The Grand Commander moved forth his lord following after with calmed steps.

"He's just one man, after all. He cannot withstand the combined might of our forces."

“That is true, but who is he to barge in like that? Restrain him first, we don’t know who we might be dealing with, Leopold. Also, have our guests escorted out to the secondary house.”

“Yes, My Lord.”

Graham De Vere responded to the Grand Commander of his Knight order while fixing his suit. The man was of average stature but walked with purpose, his chest was constantly puffed out and a monocle was sticking out of his chest pocket. His mind continued to race with ideas and possibilities. This wasn’t something that was supposed to happen on this day and the identity of the assailant was probably nothing normal. People that were capable of barging into his territory, couldn’t be simple, this was what he thought.

“Ah, Count Graham, you’re here… but what’s with all that ruckus outside?”

Once Graham had walked down from his office he greeted a somewhat sloppy-looking individual. The two men had the same rank but the man before him had an untrained body and a bulge of a belly protruding over his belt. This man was Count Laurence, a potential new ally he wished to impress. His house had gained this title not so long ago and he was at a stage of consolidating power.

“Count Laurence, I hope you didn’t have to wait for too long.”

Count Graham De Vere greeted his guest, Count Laurence, with a forced smile, trying to maintain an air of calm despite the chaos unfolding outside. The two men shook hands, their eyes meeting briefly before both turned to look out the window again, watching the scene outside with growing concern.

“It seems you have an unexpected guest, is this something I should worry about?”

Count Laurence commented while glancing out the same window. It was just in time to see a large armored man flying through the sky. A flash of bright light pushed him aside and he tumbled against the ground, creating a small crater upon impact. The overweight man's eyes widened at the sight, and he turned to Graham with a questioning look.

“...Nothing you need to worry about, Laurence. Just a minor disturbance. My knights will handle it swiftly.”

Graham’s assurance did little to ease the tension in the room. Both men knew that any disturbance significant enough to throw tier 3 armored knights through the air was far from minor. The commotion outside continued to escalate, with bursts of light and flashes of magic everywhere. It was to the point that caused the Grand Commander of all the knights here to rush out. The two counts followed after to see a floating figure surrounded by strange geometrical shapes.

“Who is this man? Your knights can’t even get close?”

Laurence took out a handkerchief to whip some sweat off his brow. He was certainly not used to things like warfare and only had brought a few guarding knights for this occasion.

“Don’t worry, my people will escort you to a safe location…”

“Count Graham! Have you finally decided to show your villainous face?”

Before Count Graham could finish the sentence the mage’s voice resonated through the entire area. It was a menacing voice that sent shivers down his spine and was backed by some type of skill. The feeling went just as fast as it came, as his most trusted retainer the Grand Commander moved forward. His cape representing the Azure Lion Knight order fluttered in the wind as all of their eyes focused on the floating magician.

“Count Graham De Vere, did you think the torture of innocents and abuse of power would go unnoticed? As the Deputy Professor from the Xandar’s Institute of Wizardry I must bring your crimes to light!”

The Grand Commander stepped forward, his armor gleaming in the sunlight of the setting sun.

"Enough of this madness! You will face the consequences of your actions. Knights, advance! Mages block his spells!"

As the Azure Lion Knights moved in, a barrage of magical projectiles collided with their shields. The small group of mages here weren’t given much time to cast their defensive spells before they were forced to retreat. The sky was filled with hard to see floating contraptions that blended with the scenery. However, none of the afflicted suffered much damage and it seemed that the man was not finished with his words.

“Do you deny this with your silence? But can you remain silent in the face of indisputable evidence? Will the esteemed lord from the righteous House Lothston think the same? I think not!”

“Huh?”

Count Laurence was about to take his leave to a safe location before his house name was mentioned. He wasn’t sure what this was about but this strange mage was trying to get his attention. For some reason, he was aware of his true identity, something that not that many people should know. Soon he would realize what this all was about, as the floating cubes and other objects started moving together to form a strange illusionary screen.

“Did you really think that such a lowly-born nobody could abduct the young lady?”

“Argh … I didn't…”

Everyone stopped as they saw the floating and moving image. It depicted a man getting tortured and held back by metal shackles. A strange lanky man with a whip was abusing him

and the magical device was even able to transform all of the sounds.

“T-that’s … That’s brother Robert!”

“W-what have you done to my child, Count Graham!”

From behind the mage, some other people arrived. One was an older woman who covered her age with a lot of makeup, even then she was quite the beauty. The mage moved his hand out to block their advance. Both looked up at the man in the illusion and their eyes started watering as they saw him being abused.

“Count Laurence, please don’t listen to these scoundrels…”

Before Count Graham could continue, Laurence raised his hand. His previous nonchalant exterior shifted as he became aware of the situation. The man could tell when someone wasn’t telling him the truth and it seemed that something wasn’t right.

“Scoundrels? Even in the face of this evidence, you still lie? This man is being held captive inside of your dungeon, tortured, and abused without proper procedure. His mother was denied lawful entrance!”

“Release my son at once! What have you done!”

“You people… This fraudster of yours tried to kidnap my own daughter! He had it coming!”

Graham’s eyebrows twitched in anger as he was getting accused of a crime. In his eyes, this man called Robert deserved every whip and broken finger he had received. His arrogance, however, was met with a reddening of the face from the other count.

“Your daughter was not kidnapped! She ran away to avoid your plans to marry her off to the highest bidder!”

“Why that’s preposterous, what evidence do you have for that?”

“Then what evidence do you have for this young man to have done such a deed? It seems to me that you were trying to avoid proper procedures, you must be lying!”

The chaotic battlefield had switched to a war of words. On one side was the count and on the other the strange magician that barged in. The knights were surprised that their master was not giving them the order to attack. However, even if he wished to do so, it wasn’t quite possible. The problem was the chubby man next to him, who was rubbing his balding head in confusion.

“Is this true, Count Graham? Have you denied this lady to see her son? Is this magical illusion true?”

This man was part of a very influential family, even though they were both counts, the De Vere family was below them. The day had started well but suddenly everything was crumbling before him. Then to make things worse, it seemed that this magician was able to hear their conversation even when he was wearing a special magical ring that should conceal it.

“Count Laurence of House Lothston, I believe that you are a just man, the person called Robert is being held not far from here, with a short walk we can confirm all my claims. If I am lying, you can take my head, I shan't resist, this I swear on the name of the great arch magus Xandar.”

“That is…”

The hesitation in Graham’s movements was obvious and the conviction the mage was showing made Laurence suspicious of this whole situation. His noble house was known for its justice and they had a hold on the noble juridical system. The very plump man here had already been called to many judicial duties in the past so he could not ignore, something the instigator of this situation knew well.

“I don’t see a reason why we can’t go there. Right, Count Graham?”

“You believe this madman?”

“No, but I prefer to see some evidence before I judge things, I’m sure you understand…”

“Very well…”

Eventually after a short back and forth Count De Vere relented. His knights were ordered to clear a path but also surround the strange magician with the Grand Commander right next to him. The two ladies who identified themselves as Robert Arden’s mother and sister had to hold themselves back for the time being. At first, they were reluctant but after speaking to the mage they regained their composure.

“Who are you, what do you want?”

Graham remained here together with his knights, clearly confused about the situation. He was aware that Laurence would discover the man who tried to abduct his daughter. In his mind, this didn’t change things that much, he still had the law on his side and the scoundrel would just avoid getting punished now. The bigger question was this man that caused this shift in his plans.

“I am just a concerned teacher, worried about my student.”

He was aware of Francine Arden, but this young girl was someone new. He could only assume that this young mage was special to some extent. A deputy professor had a unique role within the academy. They were considered the agents of the institute leaders, answering only to them. Could it be possible that this young girl was the personal pupil of the current Headmistress? This man’s role was probably to guard her and would explain why he was so forceful in his approach. He was clearly a powerful mage who was even capable of quickly producing evidence.

The man in question remained vague with his response but the count was almost certainly convinced that this would be a headache. This runt that hung around his precious daughter had more importance than he originally thought. If a deputy professor from the Xandar’s Institute of Wizardry was willing to go this far to protect Robert Arden, then the stakes were higher than he had anticipated. However, this was not over yet, he just needed to prove his case and then clear his good name…